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• Synthetic biology applied in the agrifood sector: Societal priorities and pitfalls

  89-95

  L.J. Frewer

  D. Coles

  A.M. Dijkstra

  S. Kuznesof

  H. Kendall

  G. Kaptan

  Views:

  259

  Synthetic biology offers potential for innovation in the agrifood sector, although concerns have been raised consumer rejection of applications will occur similar to that associated with the introduction of genetically modified foods. Risk-benefit assessment should address socio-economic, as well as health and environmental impacts. Ethical issues may be of particular relevance to the application synthetic biology, and may also resonate with societal concerns. A case-by-case analysis of relevant issues may be needed, and innovation must be driven by societal and consumer preferences as well as technological possibilities. Research into consumer and societal priorities is required early in the innovation trajectory.

• The relationship between corporate governance and corporate social responsibility

  28-34

  Edit Veres

  Views:

  654

  Corporate governance (CG) is a corporate governance system for large companies which includes policies and procedures for corporate social responsibility (CSR). The present study examines the relationships between CG and CSR, and analyzes the studies that separate or combine the explanation of the two concepts.CG can be interpreted as the relationship between governors and stakeholders. Angyal (2009) and Auer (2017) agree that the two phenomena coexist and are connected at several points. The goals of the two phenomena are intertwined, compliance with other important requirements (environmental, labor law) besides the primary corporate goal. CG is a system based on the sharing of power and roles between owners, management and boards (board, supervisory board). The roles of ownership, supervision, and control are separated. The division of power means that the boards keep the management under strict control and the owners can account for the boards (Tasi, 2012). According to Tasi (2012), responsible CG involves careful management; financial planning and implementation; control mechanisms for the operation of the company; company transparency and business ethics
  issues; publicizing corporate information and corporate social responsibility policies and practices. Angyal (2009) sees that CG and CSR are intertwined “neither intersection, nor intersection, nor parallelism, but coexistence”. (Angel,
  2009: 14). It does not agree with the incompatibility of corporate governance or corporate governance and social responsibility, in practice the former two are more common. Corporate governance encompasses corporate social responsibility policies, procedures, and can be interpreted as the relationship between governors and stakeholders. The authors of the studies analyzed agree that the two phenomena coexist and are connected at several points. The goals of the two phenomena are intertwined with compliance with other important requirements (environmental, labor law) besides the primary corporate goal.

  JEL Classification: G30; G39, M14

• Structured commodity finance

  77-83

  Péter Suták

  Views:

  171

  Over the past years, the financial stock market – providing the capital demand that is the result of stockpiling and the characteristic strong seasonality observed in the agricultural sector – has increasingly grown and become more “used” by market participants. Its size had reached an annual value of 200 billion HUF, of which agricultural products had received the largest proportion through the various market participants (producers, integrators, traders, feed producers, mills). In the meantime, this market had become part of the competition between the commercial banks that are the largest financers of the sector, due to which the financing credit institutions had undertaken increasing risk levels, with respect to both degree of financing and the VAT financing related to stockholding. The practice of commodity financing by banks display a rather varied picture at present. Considering the exceptional degree of fall in prices and the actions of companies totally disregarding business ethics in 2008, it seems necessary to reveal the full scope of risks inherent in commodity financing. The primary aim of such an exercise is to ensure the prudent operation of refinancing activities for commercial banks. The inherent risks in trade financing – as has been proven by the experiences of previous years – are not found primarily in the goods themselves, but rather at the actual storage facility and also emerge in relation to clients, as well as the inadequate and ineffective risk management of price volatility by the financers. Therefore, the establishment of banking risk management and risk prevention techniques, including the development of new financing procedures become indispensable, minimizing all types of risks that had emerged in previous years.